Closest I Get
by Megaira
Summary: She'd saved him from falling that day, the least he would do was let her go gently. (IzuOcha, One Shot)


A/N: I was listening to "Closest I Get" by Katie Herzig, and this flashed in my head. I recommend listening to it while reading or after reading it?

Disclaimer: I do not own My Hero Academia or the song inspiring this fic. This is a work of fiction that I am not making a profit off of.

* * *

He was her best friend.

The first moment her eyes met those ordinary green eyes and dopey freckled face, Uraraka hadn't given it much thought. She was being nice.

He'd tripped over his own feet, and she'd stopped his descent without thinking. It wasn't a big deal. Uraraka hadn't thought much about seeing him again. There had to be at least five hundred students there to participate in the entrance test.

She was so focused on getting as many points as possible that she really hadn't realized he was there until he stepped in to help her.

She'd been pinned by some debris; and instead of running like the other applicants, Midoriya had stepped up to help her. At the time, she wasn't sure if her small act of kindness made him feel obligated to help her or if he was the type of person who would rip his heart out his chest for a stranger.

Uraraka only wished he'd done something to stop her descent.

She'd saved him from falling that day, the least he would do was let her go gently.

But he hadn't.

"What did you get for number three?"

Uraraka blinked, eyes bleary as she looked at the green tuft of hair sitting next to her.

Pencil balanced between his lips, dark green eyes staring intently at the textbook in front of him. A serious scowl wrinkled his face as his fingers thumbed against his knee. "Did you finish number three?" he repeated, turning to glance at her.

"Oh," she sighed, sitting up as she looked down at her empty page. Uraraka tilted her notebook toward her as she pretended to keep working. "I'm still on the second problem." She would have been further along if she hadn't been mapping constellations on his freckled cheeks.

Izuku Midoriya had unknowingly pulled her into his orbit.

That clumsy boy who'd nearly face planted in front of her a year ago had morphed into one of the top students in their class. He was everything she wanted to be as a hero.

Thoughtful.

Brave.

Intelligent.

Persistent.

Dedicated.

Uraraka spent countless hours contemplating his virtues and admiring his vices.

Selflessness.

Recklessness.

Of course, Midoriya's vices were also a beautiful virtue that skyrocketed her admiration for him.

Her hand stilled as she finished writing the problem on her page. "Actually," Uraraka glanced at him, setting her notebook in front of them on his red, white, and blue covers. "I think I'm having some trouble with this one." She wasn't. Balancing equations came easily to her.

Uraraka could do these problems in her sleep.

But…

"Sure," Midoriya tilted his head, strands of his hair tickling the side of Uraraka's face.

She inhaled slowly, savoring his natural earthy scent. While the other boys in reeked of cologne, Midoriya's scent reminded her of the crisp air and fresh grass. It made her think of dewy mornings after a summer rainstorm.

Their knees brushed as he squeezed himself closer to her making her legs burn and her very aware they were doing homework alone in his room.

"Okay, so you start here with carbon..." he instructed as he began the problem. His handwriting was messy and frazzled as if his hands were trying to catch up with his thoughts.

She loved listening to him murmur to himself when his thoughts ran wild with theories and ideas. His shoulders would hunch and a finger would curl against his chin as his lips moved faster than anyone around him could comprehend.

"Then we need to move this." But there were moments after he processed the seemingly neverending stream of information. His voice would be precise and focused. The low rumble of his voice vibrated through her body as Uraraka pretended to focus on the problem he was showing her.

Resting her hand underneath her chin and elbow to her knee, she leaned closer against him pretending she couldn't see what he was doing. She watched as he patiently went through the equation with her, giving him a little nod when he'd look at her to make sure she was following.

"And that's all there is to it," Midoriya turned to face her, giving her a bright smile. "You got it?"

"Yeah," Uraraka whispered, picking up her pencil as she moved to the next one. "I think I'm going to try number three now."

"Okay," he nodded, turning back to his own book. "Let me know if you need any help."

Number three was easier than number two. "Thanks Deku."

"Of course."

A slow smile curled on her lips when he didn't move away from her. Feeling brave, she curled her toes into his blanket and brought her knees in front of her as she placed her notebook in front of her. She began to write the next problem out, brown eyes watching carefully for a reaction to her proximity.

It was as if he hadn't noticed her next to him. His pencil scratched busily in his notebook as he muttered to himself. Uraraka resisted the urge to trace the lines chiseled on his forehead from concentrating.

Inhaling sharply, she rested her head against his shoulder. "Thank you for helping me with my homework." She carefully darted her eyes from him to her notebook as she looked for a reaction.

"It's not a big deal." A small smile curled on his face as he moved to the next problem. "You helped me with astronomy."

"Oh." Her ears reddened recalling the night they'd sat outside finding constellations for an assignment. "That was nothing."

"No," he paused, lowering his pencil turning to face her. Green eyes sparkled with mirth as a full-blown goofy grin crept to his lips. "You're really good. I don't think I would have passed that class without you.

Uraraka dipped her head down, biting her bottom lip as she felt a blush spread from her cheeks to the tips of her ears. Every time she looked into his, she was always astonished how truly green they were. She gave up trying to find the perfect way to describe that shade. "Oh, I'm sure you would have found a way." she breathed softly, tracing emerald flecks around his pupils.

He chuckled, turning to face her. "Yeah, but you helped me so much," Midoriya commented leaning in toward her.

Uraraka felt her breath catch. "I-" she stuttered, feeling her heartbeat nearly drowning out his voice. Her eyes drifted down to his lips as she licked her own readying herself for a moment she'd dreamed of. With a long sigh, her eyes lowered to little slivers.

His hand came to her shoulder. "Uraraka…"

Her eyes jolted open, looking at his warm expression.

"You're a great friend."

She felt her stomach drop, as she swallowed a lump embarrassment. "You're a great friend-" Her voice cracked saying the word as she forced herself to smile through it. "Too Deku."

"I don't know what I'd do without you, Iida, and Todoroki," he grinned, patting her shoulder affectionately.

He hadn't noticed her leaning in for the kiss. "Yeah," she whispered, vision blurring as tears began to cloud her vision. "We should-" Uraraka leaned away from him, forcing a little cough from her chest. "We should get dinner. Maybe text Iida and Todoroki and see if they wanna join us?"

"Yeah! We need a break." Midoriya nodded, sliding off the bed and walking over to his desk to retrieve his phone.

Uraraka rested her head against the wall behind her as she willed her tears away. "Sounds good."

 _What if the closest I get to the moment is now?_


End file.
